Iran have best team ever Football World Cup

Hannover striker Vahid Hashemian believes Iran have their best side ever leading into the World Cup in Germany this summer. "We definitely have the best team in our history. This team is very intelligent and mature," he said at Iran's training camp.Bayern Munich's 2004 Asian player of the year Ali Karimi agrees: "In my opinion, we currently possess an extremely strong team, which with just a couple of exceptions, is also extremely young. That makes...

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FIFA to adopt new world rankings

FIFA is adopting a new world soccer ranking system to rate the world's top teams.This will be released on July 12, three days after the World Cup ends."We don't think it's that bad at all, but there is always room for improvement," FIFA spokesman Andreas Herren said.Under the ranking system, FIFA will take into account games played over the last four years.Under the old system, it counted results over the last eight, which distorted current form.FIFA's old system awarded team ranking points based on the importance of the games, relative strength...

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Walcott's girlfriend asks media for privacy

Walcott's girlfriend asks media for privacyThe teenage girlfriend of England World Cup squad member Theo Walcott today asked the media to respect her privacy while she revises for forthcoming AS-level exams.Melanie Slade, 17, issued a joint statement with the Walcott family asking that they be left alone, just hours after she appeared at a charity publicity event.The statement said that she would not be considering any of the "very kind requests for interviews or commercial offers" until after the World Cup.[Read more]--------------------------Teddy's...

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Argentina : Pekerman selects 16 for Madrid meeting

Argentina : Pekerman selects 16 for Madrid meetingArgentina coach Jose Pekerman has revealed the names of 16 players he will be meeting next Monday and Tuesday in Madrid. The list, containing some notable omissions, offers the first concrete sign of what Pekerman's final squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup will look like.Of the 16 players called up on Friday, all but one are European-based. The exception is Boca Juniors goalkeeper Roberto Abbondanzieri, who will fly to Spain on Sunday night after a key game in his country's Clausura championship.According...

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England squad included Rooney and Walcott

England squad included Rooney and WalcottThe injured Manchester United FC forward Wayne Rooney has been named in Sven-Göran Eriksson's provisional 23-man squad for the FIFA World Cup in Germany.Striking problemsThe 20-year-old broke a metatarsal bone in United's 3-0 defeat by Chelsea FC on Saturday 29 April. He is not expected to be fit again until the second week of June at the earliest, with England due to open their campaign against Paraguay on 10 June. Fellow striker Michael Owen is also in the selection after just recovering from a similar...

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